Liberty League International in Scottsdale is a Pyramid Scheme, Lawsuit Alleges

Three years after getting busted by the state for making false claims, Scottsdale-based Liberty League International is being sued in federal court over claims that the company is running a pyramid scheme.

The class-action suit, first reported by courthousenews.com, accuses Liberty League, at 14300 North Northsight Boulevard, Suite 210, in Scottsdale, of conning $5 million out of its "members."

The company promised members big returns for some kind of business plan. In reality, the suits says, Liberty League fleeced its flock -- members were required to either pay thousands of dollars for ridiculous "conferences" or find other suckers to attend the paid events.

Federal court records reviewed by New Times show that for the biggest conference, which cost more than $12,000, members were flown to Greece, Australia and other locations to learn "advanced business principles" and how to amass wealth. Customers were "tutored" to lie about their own success with the program when selling it to others.

One look at Liberty League International's ultra-slick Web site should have given potential customers their first clue something was wrong. It's all style and no substance.

"Liberty League is you," gushes Brent Payne (above), one of the company's two founders, in the site's cheesy intro.

Attorney General Terry Goddardspanked these guys for exactly the same thing. Anyone with access to a computer should have known Arizona had accused Liberty League of tricking their customers.

The state forced the company to pay a $115,000 fine, but it may not have changed its business model, if the lawsuit claims are to be believed. In addition to the fine, the state settlement also required Liberty League to:

*Refrain from making unsubstantiated income claims.

*Advise potential customers of the correct percentage of participants who have made a profit through their participation in the Liberty League program.

*Refrain from making any false or deceptive statements in marketing materials.

Chances seem low, at this point, that the company adhered to these rules.

The case piqued the interest of Anne Hilby, spokeswoman for Goddard's office, when we called her.

"The attorney general's office is always interested to know about allegatioins of fraud or other problematic activity, especially if it's a business that's come up on our radar before," she says.

We got Liberty League's answering machine during its business hours. We left a message but haven't heard back.

Named as defendants in the lawsuit are: Liberty League International, Beyond Freedom Publishing, Liberty League founders Brent Payne and Shane Krider, Liberty League Holdings, and Big Ass Britches Holdings.